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IT MANAGEMENT BLOG

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<title>Hybrid Cloud Blog</title>
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<link>https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud</link>
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<lastBuildDate>Thu, 08 Dec 2016 17:00:56 +0000</lastBuildDate>
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<title>Introducing Windows Server Premium Assurance and SQL Server Premium Assurance</title>
<link>https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/2016/12/08/introducing-windows-server-premium-assurance-and-sql-server-premium-assurance/</link>
<comments>https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/2016/12/08/introducing-windows-server-premium-assurance-and-sql-server-premium-assurance/#respond</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 08 Dec 2016 17:00:56 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Microsoft Server and Cloud Platform Team]]></dc:creator>
<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/?p=13805</guid>
<description><![CDATA[New offerings and Software Assurance essential to your ongoing digital transformation This post was authored by Mark Jewett, Senior Director of Cloud Platform Marketing, and Tiffany Wissner, Senior Director of Data Platform Marketing. IT today is in a fundamental state of change, spanning between enabling digital transformation to make their company more competitive, while also <p><a class="read-more" href="https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/2016/12/08/introducing-windows-server-premium-assurance-and-sql-server-premium-assurance/">Continue reading</a></p>]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<h3><em>New offerings and Software Assurance essential to your ongoing digital transformation</em></h3>&#10;<p><em>This post was authored by Mark Jewett, Senior Director of Cloud Platform Marketing, and Tiffany Wissner, Senior Director of Data Platform Marketing.</em></p>&#10;<p>IT today is in a fundamental state of change, spanning between enabling digital transformation to make their company more competitive, while also maintaining stable and secure operations of existing systems. As part of this changing transformation, many applications are moving fast to the cloud, taking advantage of the agility, scale, and innovation it offers. Some applications arent ready to move yet, but require modernization to better utilize more agile development processes and further the organizations digital goals. Some mission critical and legacy applications just need to keep running without disruption. Your portfolio of applications has a diverse set of needs that will continue to evolve over time.</p>&#10;<p>To provide you with further flexibility as your needs evolve, today we are announcing two new offerings to help you run applications even longer without disruption: <a target="_blank" href="http://download.microsoft.com/download/C/5/1/C51D8E55-5538-4F21-8C9D-A66DB31C4B46/SQL_Server_and_Windows_Server_Premium_Assurance_Datasheet.pdf">Windows Server Premium Assurance and SQL Server Premium Assurance</a>. These offerings add six more years of product support for Windows Server and SQL Server, allowing for a minimum of 16 years of total support (five years each of Mainstream and Extended Support, plus the new Premium Assurance period). The additional support period provides Security Updates and Bulletins rated Critical and Important (see the <a target="_blank" href="https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/security/gg309177.aspx">Security Bulletin Severity Rating System</a> for definitions) for both products. This helps you continue to meet compliance requirements and ensure security on systems you arent ready to update. Furthermore, greater peace of mind on those applications allows you to focus your energy on the applications more core to your digital transformation.</p>&#10;<p><img title="PremiumAssurance_1" style="float: none;padding-top: 0px;padding-left: 0px;margin-left: auto;padding-right: 0px;margin-right: auto;border: 0px" border="0" alt="PremiumAssurance_1" src="https://msdnshared.blob.core.windows.net/media/2016/12/PremiumAssurance_1.jpg" width="610" height="174" class="aligncenter" /></p>&#10;<p style="text-align: center">Premium Assurance extends the product lifecycles for Windows Server and SQL Server</p>&#10;<p>You can purchase Windows Server Premium Assurance and SQL Server Premium assurance separately or together, and both offerings will be available starting in early 2017. Premium Assurance pricing will start at 5% of the current product license cost, and will increase over time (up to 12%). Buying before the end of June 2017 means you will save nearly 60% on the cost of Premium Assurance. The first versions covered by Premium Assurance will be SQL Server 2008 and 2008 R2 (Extended Support ends in July 2019) and Windows Server 2008 and 2008 R2 (Extended Support ends in January 2020).</p>&#10;<p>Windows Server Premium Assurance and SQL Server Premium Assurance are purchased as add-ons to active Software Assurance for each product. In fact, Software Assurance is an essential investment in the journey to more broadly transform your application portfolio, providing the following notable benefits (and more!):</p>&#10;<ul>&#10;<li>To help modernize applications, Software Assurance gives you access to the latest Windows Server and SQL Server innovation at no additional cost. The next version of Windows Server is currently in planning, and will further advance the Windows Server 2016 capabilities around hybrid cloud, multi-layered security, containers, Nano Server, and software-defined datacenter technology. The <a target="_blank" href="https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/dataplatforminsider/2016/11/16/announcing-sql-server-on-linux-public-preview-first-preview-of-next-release-of-sql-server/">next version of SQL Server</a>, already available in preview, brings the performance and security of SQL Server to Linux.</li>&#10;<li>For applications moving to the cloud, Software Assurance provides unique flexibility and savings benefits. The <a target="_blank" href="https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/pricing/hybrid-use-benefit/">Azure Hybrid Use Benefit</a> provides up to 40-50% savings on Windows Server virtual machines in Azure. Similarly, <a target="_blank" href="https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/pricing/license-mobility/">License Mobility</a> provides the flexibility to deploy existing SQL Server licenses in the cloud without additional fees.</li>&#10;</ul>&#10;<p>To learn more about Windows Server Premium Assurance and SQL Server Premium Assurance, and the six additional years of product support they provide, read the <a target="_blank" href="http://download.microsoft.com/download/C/5/1/C51D8E55-5538-4F21-8C9D-A66DB31C4B46/SQL_Server_and_Windows_Server_Premium_Assurance_Datasheet.pdf">datasheet</a>. The new offerings will be available early next year. In the meantime, buying and renewing Software Assurance with all your Windows Server and SQL Server purchases continues to be the best way to get the latest innovation and most flexibility for your application portfolio.</p>&#10;]]></content:encoded>
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<title>Ignite session replay: Modernize applications with Windows Server 2016</title>
<link>https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/2016/12/05/ignite-session-replay-modernize-applications-with-windows-server-2016/</link>
<comments>https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/2016/12/05/ignite-session-replay-modernize-applications-with-windows-server-2016/#respond</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 05 Dec 2016 21:00:05 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Microsoft Windows Server Team]]></dc:creator>
<category><![CDATA[Announcements]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/?p=13735</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Microsoft Windows Server 2016 was designed to support both traditional applications, as well as new cloud-native applications and DevOps workflows. Jeffrey Snover and Jeff Woolsey provide a great overview of the new options available today with the cloud-ready operating system: The Nano Server configuration reduces the size of the OS deployment by 25x and dramatically <p><a class="read-more" href="https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/2016/12/05/ignite-session-replay-modernize-applications-with-windows-server-2016/">Continue reading</a></p>]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Microsoft Windows Server 2016 was designed to support both traditional applications, as well as new cloud-native applications and DevOps workflows. Jeffrey Snover and Jeff Woolsey provide a great overview of the new options available today with the cloud-ready operating system:</p>&#10;<ul>&#10;<li>The Nano Server configuration reduces the size of the OS deployment by 25x and dramatically reduces start times and reboots.</li>&#10;<li>Windows Server Containers and enhancements to management and PowerShell create new options for modernizing and managing todays applications.</li>&#10;<li>New architectures for packaging, repositories, configuration, operational testing, and secure operations to minimize the friction between Devs and Ops and maximize the velocity of code deployment.</li>&#10;</ul>&#10;<p>Watch the Ignite session:</p>&#10;<p><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/4BJqSN49Ye0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></p>&#10;<p>For these and nearly 70 other great sessions, <a target="_blank" href="https://myignite.microsoft.com/videos?f=%5B%7B%22name%22:%22Windows%20Server%22,%22facetName%22:%22products%22%7D%5D">visit our Windows Server Ignite sessions on-demand</a>.</p>&#10;]]></content:encoded>
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<title>Ignite session replay: New security features in Windows Server 2016</title>
<link>https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/2016/12/01/ignite-session-replay-new-security-features-in-windows-server-2016/</link>
<comments>https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/2016/12/01/ignite-session-replay-new-security-features-in-windows-server-2016/#respond</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 01 Dec 2016 19:00:48 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Microsoft Windows Server Team]]></dc:creator>
<category><![CDATA[Announcements]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/?p=13715</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Cyberattacks are more sophisticated than ever before. Now you can use the OS as a new line of defense to help protect your organizations IT assets. Windows Server 2016 provides layers of protection that help address both known and emerging threats resulting in a server that actively contributes to securing your infrastructure. The protections were <p><a class="read-more" href="https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/2016/12/01/ignite-session-replay-new-security-features-in-windows-server-2016/">Continue reading</a></p>]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Cyberattacks are more sophisticated than ever before. Now you can use the OS as a new line of defense to help protect your organizations IT assets.</p>&#10;<p>Windows Server 2016 provides layers of protection that help address both known and emerging threats resulting in a server that actively contributes to securing your infrastructure. The protections were built to mitigate an array of attack vectors and to deal with the overall threat of ongoing attacks inside the datacenter and range from enhanced detection and hardening to managing privileged identity and protecting virtual machines from a compromised fabric.</p>&#10;<p>Check out this Ignite session to learn more:</p>&#10;<p><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/yoT5KgvN4Eo" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></p>&#10;<p>For these and nearly 70 other great sessions, <a target="_blank" href="https://myignite.microsoft.com/videos?f=%5B%7B%22name%22:%22Windows%20Server%22,%22facetName%22:%22products%22%7D%5D">visit our Windows Server Ignite sessions on-demand</a>.</p>&#10;]]></content:encoded>
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<title>Announcing Microsoft BizTalk Server 2016 general availability</title>
<link>https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/2016/12/01/announcing-microsoft-biztalk-server-2016-general-availability/</link>
<comments>https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/2016/12/01/announcing-microsoft-biztalk-server-2016-general-availability/#respond</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 01 Dec 2016 16:00:26 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Microsoft Server and Cloud Platform Team]]></dc:creator>
<category><![CDATA[Announcements]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/?p=13745</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Today, we are announcing the general availability of BizTalk Server 2016. With this release, customers would benefit from new hybrid application integration capabilities that help them seamlessly connect on-premises and cloud-based applications. This release highlights Microsofts commitment to creating a comprehensive hybrid integration platform that offers flexibility for our customers to integrate applications, data, and <p><a class="read-more" href="https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/2016/12/01/announcing-microsoft-biztalk-server-2016-general-availability/">Continue reading</a></p>]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Today, we are announcing the general availability of <a target="_blank" href="https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/cloud-platform/biztalk">BizTalk Server 2016</a>. With this release, customers would benefit from new hybrid application integration capabilities that help them seamlessly connect on-premises and cloud-based applications.</p>&#10;<p>This release highlights Microsofts commitment to creating a comprehensive hybrid integration platform that offers flexibility for our customers to integrate applications, data, and processes across both on-premises and the cloud. We are also bringing two of our core integration platforms BizTalk Server and Azure Logic Apps closer with this release, enabling customers to connect their on-premises applications to other SaaS applications and innovate using Azure services such as Functions, Cognitive Service, Machine Learning, and more.</p>&#10;<p>Please take a moment to learn more about <a target="_blank" href="https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/mt670742.aspx">what is new with BizTalk Server 2016</a>. Get started now by downloading the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/evalcenter/evaluate-biztalk-server-2016">BizTalk Server 2016</a> evaluation. As always, we want to hear from you about your experience using these products, so please be sure to share your comments with us below.</p>&#10;]]></content:encoded>
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<title>Watch Windows Server 2016 sessions from Ignite</title>
<link>https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/2016/11/30/watch-windows-server-2016-sessions-from-ignite/</link>
<comments>https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/2016/11/30/watch-windows-server-2016-sessions-from-ignite/#respond</comments>
<pubDate>Wed, 30 Nov 2016 19:00:24 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Microsoft Windows Server Team]]></dc:creator>
<category><![CDATA[Announcements]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/?p=13695</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Did you know you can go back and listen to all our Ignite sessions on-demand? For a great overview on the newly launched updates to our flagship server operating and management software, watch Meet Windows Server 2016 and System Center 2016 with Mike Neil and Erin Chapple. This session summarizes the highlights of the new <p><a class="read-more" href="https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/2016/11/30/watch-windows-server-2016-sessions-from-ignite/">Continue reading</a></p>]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Did you know you can go back and listen to all our Ignite sessions on-demand? For a great overview on the newly launched updates to our flagship server operating and management software, watch <a target="_blank" href="https://myignite.microsoft.com/videos/3199">Meet Windows Server 2016 and System Center 2016</a> with Mike Neil and Erin Chapple.</p>&#10;<p>This session summarizes the highlights of the new release, including demos of key new features such as Just Enough and Just-in-time Administration, Storage Spaces Direct, Windows Server containers and more.If you havent had time to learn about the new features yet, its the perfect session to watch.</p>&#10;<p>For these and nearly 70 other great sessions, <a target="_blank" href="https://myignite.microsoft.com/videos?f=%5B%7B%22name%22:%22Windows%20Server%22,%22facetName%22:%22products%22%7D%5D">visit our Windows Server Ignite sessions on-demand</a>.</p>&#10;]]></content:encoded>
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<title>HPE and Microsoft Advance Collaboration to Accelerate Hybrid Cloud Adoption</title>
<link>https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/2016/11/29/hpe-and-microsoft-advance-collaboration-to-accelerate-hybrid-cloud-adoption/</link>
<comments>https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/2016/11/29/hpe-and-microsoft-advance-collaboration-to-accelerate-hybrid-cloud-adoption/#respond</comments>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Nov 2016 14:05:47 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Cloud Platform Team]]></dc:creator>
<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/?p=13675</guid>
<description><![CDATA[This post was authored by Mark Jewett, Senior Director Product Marketing, Cloud Platform Marketing. Im here in London at the HPE Discover event.Today, Scott Guthrie, our Executive Vice President of Cloud and Enterprise, appeared in the keynote with Antonio Neri, Executive Vice President and General Manager, Enterprise Group at HPE.They discussed our shared view on <p><a class="read-more" href="https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/2016/11/29/hpe-and-microsoft-advance-collaboration-to-accelerate-hybrid-cloud-adoption/">Continue reading</a></p>]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><em>This post was authored by Mark Jewett, Senior Director Product Marketing, Cloud Platform Marketing.</em></p>&#10;<p>Im here in London at the HPE Discover event.Today, Scott Guthrie, our Executive Vice President of Cloud and Enterprise, appeared in the keynote with Antonio Neri, Executive Vice President and General Manager, Enterprise Group at HPE.They discussed our shared view on the hybrid reality enterprises face as they transform their IT to cloud computing, as well as the great solutions we have around Azure as the hybrid cloud platform.They showcased many examples of progress that weve made in the year since the last HPE Discover event in London, and pointed to new solutions like Azure Stack coming soon. I encourage you to <a target="_blank" href="https://www.hpe.com/us/en/newsroom/news-archive/featured-article/2016/11/HPE-and-Microsoft-Advance-Their-Collaboration-Around-Microsoft-Azure-to-Accelerate-Hybrid-Cloud-Adoption.html">read this blog post</a> from HPEs Ken Won, Director of HPE Cloud Solutions Marketing to learn more.</p>&#10;]]></content:encoded>
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<title>Introducing Service Map for dependency-aware monitoring, troubleshooting and workload migrations</title>
<link>https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/2016/11/21/introducing-service-map-for-dependency-aware-monitoring-troubleshooting-and-workload-migrations/</link>
<comments>https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/2016/11/21/introducing-service-map-for-dependency-aware-monitoring-troubleshooting-and-workload-migrations/#comments</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 21 Nov 2016 17:00:49 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Microsoft Server and Cloud Platform Team]]></dc:creator>
<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Microsoft Mechanics]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[OMS]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/?p=13635</guid>
<description><![CDATA[This post was authored by Nick Burling, Principal Program Manager on the Enterprise Cloud Management Team. Managing modern business services requires visibility across the complex interdependencies of your critical applications and supporting infrastructure. Yet IT operations teams currently struggle to manage the complexity of discovering and troubleshooting the interconnected services their businesses depend on. Today, <p><a class="read-more" href="https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/2016/11/21/introducing-service-map-for-dependency-aware-monitoring-troubleshooting-and-workload-migrations/">Continue reading</a></p>]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><em>This post was authored by Nick Burling, Principal Program Manager on the Enterprise Cloud Management Team.</em></p>&#10;<p>Managing modern business services requires visibility across the complex interdependencies of your critical applications and supporting infrastructure. Yet IT operations teams currently struggle to manage the complexity of discovering and troubleshooting the interconnected services their businesses depend on. Today, were announcing the public preview of Service Map, a new solution in <a href="https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/cloud-platform/insight-and-analytics">Operations Management Suite Insight &amp; Analytics</a> that provides this visibility by presenting your servers as you think of themas interconnected systems that rely on other technologies to deliver business services.</p>&#10;<h2>Real-time dependency discovery and mapping</h2>&#10;<p>Service Map, which was previously called Application Dependency Monitor, discovers and maps server and process dependencies in real-time, without any predefinition, and visualizes application components, service dependencies, and supporting infrastructure configuration. This helps you eliminate the guesswork of problem isolation, identify surprise connections and broken links in your environment, and perform Azure migrations knowing that critical systems and endpoints wont be left behind. The Service Map public preview supports Windows and Linux guests, in any cloud and on-premises, discovering dependencies for any TCP-connected process running in those guests. As part of the cloud management capabilities in Operations Management Suite, Service Map enhances your ability to track dependencies in your hybrid cloud environment, making it easier to manage the complexity of multiple clouds.</p>&#10;<p><img width="1024" height="548" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-13655" alt="Service Map" src="https://msdnshared.blob.core.windows.net/media/2016/11/Service-Map1-1024x548.png" /></p>&#10;<h2>Accelerated troubleshooting and root-cause analysis</h2>&#10;<p>In the most recent episode of <a href="https://youtu.be/_Z3tzaQHj1M">Microsoft Mechanics</a>, I showcase the new Service Map capability and demonstrate the ways that Service Map can simplify analysis of complex operational issues. This includes a hands-on look at how to automatically discover app and system dependencies to accelerate troubleshooting and root cause analysis when used in conjunction with other <a href="https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/suites/operations-management-suite/">Operations Management Suite</a> services like Log Analytics and Change Tracking. Youll see how the new Service Map capability provides dependency-aware diagnostics and troubleshooting by integrating performance data, alerts, changes, and critical security issues with rich, dynamic topology views. In addition, youll learn how you can take advantage of Service Map to expedite your app and workload migrations, making it easier to shift to the cloud.</p>&#10;<p><iframe width="560" height="315" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" frameborder="0" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/_Z3tzaQHj1M"></iframe></p>&#10;<p>As we go forward with the preview, were excited to get feedback from you. You can submit your comments in our <a href="https://feedback.azure.com/forums/267889-log-analytics/category/184492-service-map">User Voice forum for Service Map</a>. To get started today, create a <a href="https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/cloud-platform/operations-management-suite-trial">free Microsoft Operations Management Suite account</a>. Learn more about Service Map on our <a href="https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/operations-management-suite/operations-management-suite-service-map">documentation</a> page.</p>&#10;<p>Service Map is just one of the capabilities available to help you gain control over your hybrid cloud. In addition to automatic discovery for application and system dependencies, check out a related <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1RrC30GYx8E">Microsoft Mechanics episode</a> focused on unified management across Linux and Windows Servers in hybrid cloud environments.</p>&#10;]]></content:encoded>
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<title>New Azure PaaS services available for Azure Stack Technical Preview 2</title>
<link>https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/2016/11/17/new-azure-paas-services-available-for-azure-stack-technical-preview-2/</link>
<pubDate>Thu, 17 Nov 2016 23:35:35 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Microsoft Server and Cloud Platform Team]]></dc:creator>
<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[PaaS]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/?p=13605</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Today the Azure Stack team announced the release of new Azure PaaS services for Azure Stack Technical Preview 2. Read more on the Azure blog.]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Today the Azure Stack team announced the release of new Azure PaaS services for Azure Stack Technical Preview 2. Read more on the <a href="https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/blog/new-azure-paas-services-available-for-azure-stack-technical-preview-2-tp2/">Azure blog</a>.</p>&#10;]]></content:encoded>
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<title>FBI warning: Ransomware attacks skyrocketing</title>
<link>https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/2016/11/04/fbi-warning-ransomware-attacks-skyrocketing/</link>
<comments>https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/2016/11/04/fbi-warning-ransomware-attacks-skyrocketing/#comments</comments>
<pubDate>Fri, 04 Nov 2016 22:00:42 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Cloud Platform Team]]></dc:creator>
<category><![CDATA[Hybrid Cloud]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Security]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Cybersecurity]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[OMS]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Ransomware]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/?p=13585</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Cybercriminals collected $209 million in the first three months of 2016 by extorting businesses and institutions to unlock computer servers.1 And that estimate is probably low, considering many companies fail to report such attacks for a variety of reasons. This type of crime has grown rapidly and is quickly becoming a favorite of attackers because <p><a class="read-more" href="https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/2016/11/04/fbi-warning-ransomware-attacks-skyrocketing/">Continue reading</a></p>]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><strong><em>Cybercriminals collected $209 million in the first three months of 2016 by extorting businesses and institutions to unlock computer servers.<sup>1</sup></em></strong> And that estimate is probably low, considering many companies fail to report such attacks for a variety of reasons. This type of crime has grown rapidly and is quickly becoming a favorite of attackers because it is so easy to execute. An attack like this on your business can have disastrous effects, many of which arent seen until after the ransom is paid.</p>&#10;<h2>What is Ransomware?</h2>&#10;<p>Simply put, its a type of malware that gets into a computer or server and encrypts files, making them inaccessible. The goal is to shut down your ability to do normal business. The attacker then demands a ransom for the key to unlock your data.</p>&#10;<p>One recently publicized attack underscores how difficult it can be to decide what to do. An L.A.-area hospital was targeted and hundreds of patients lives were put at risk. The attackers achieved their infiltration through a simple targeted phishing email and one click of an attachment locked up the hospitals medical records. They had very little recourse and ended up paying $17,000 to the attackers for the key to their own data<sup>2</sup>. In this case, paying the ransom was an easy choice with real health concerns in the mix, but thats also what made them an ideal target. If you get hit with a ransomware attack, your organization will have an extremely difficult decision to make.</p>&#10;<p>Neither is ideal.</p>&#10;<h4>Choice A: Pay the ransom</h4>&#10;<p>This is certainly the easiest way to get back up and running, but it only increases the likelihood youll be attacked again. Additionally, you are funneling money to organized crime or potentially even terror organizations. In some cases, companies paid the ransom only to have the attackers ask for more.</p>&#10;<h4>Choice B: Work to recover your systems</h4>&#10;<p>If you choose not to pay the ransom, youll need to recover the locked data yourself. If you do not have a clear recovery protocol in place, then you may have to deal with being locked out of your data and systems for a while. That forces you to weigh the impact on your business against the ransom ask, which is exactly what they want.</p>&#10;<h2>FBI guidelines: How to protect your company<sup>3</sup></h2>&#10;<p>While ransomware attacks may have spiked, the tactics for preventing them are not new. Its the same for all types of malware. Educate your employees on proper email protocol. Keep hardware and software patched and up-to-date, especially on your endpoints. And manage the access of your privileged accounts.</p>&#10;<p>That said, like malware, its nearly impossible to stop everything. Per the FBI, your best defense against this type of attack is having a strong backup policy. Not just backup. <strong><em>Backup Policy</em></strong>. That means you:</p>&#10;<ul>&#10;<li><strong>Regularly back up data.</strong> This is the simplest and most effective way to recover critical data.</li>&#10;<li><strong>Secure your backups.</strong> That means storing them somewhere that is not connected to the original data, such as in the cloud or physically offline.</li>&#10;<li><strong>Run recovery drills.</strong> The only way to know for sure if your system will work is to test it in real-life situations.</li>&#10;</ul>&#10;<p>To us, this just further underscores the need to have a strong recovery plan that includes backup and disaster recovery (DR). Many companies, once they have a DR solution in place, are choosing to use less and less backup to save costs. The problem is, while incredibly useful, disaster recovery faithfully replicates your current environment. If that environment is compromised, so is your DR.</p>&#10;<p>When you have solutions like Azure Site Recovery and Azure Backup, you dont need to take that risk. <a href="https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/services/site-recovery/">Azure Site Recovery</a> allows you to preserve history in the DR site, which can help reduce the problem posed by compromised disaster recovery. In addition, <a href="https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/services/backup/">Azure Backup</a> gives an extremely cost-effective and secure way to store your backups in the cloud. Backups in Azure are inherently safer because attackers not only need access to your environment, but also to a secure backup vault on Azure to orchestrate a destructive attack. Azure Backup preserves recovery points for up to 99 years while securing the backups offsite with tools like two-factor authentication and deferred delete preventing destructive operations against your backups. Moreover, since Azure Site Recovery preserves recovery points for multiple days, you can get operations going very quickly by restoring a working environment and patching vulnerabilities.</p>&#10;<h3>Learn more</h3>&#10;<p>See how integrated cloud backup and disaster recovery provide you with greater security on our Protection and Recovery page.</p>&#10;<h3>Free trial</h3>&#10;<p>Try Operations Management Suite for yourself and see how it can give you increased visibility and control across your entire hybrid environment. Get your <a href="https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/cloud-platform/operations-management-suite-trial">free trial &gt;</a><br />&#10;<span style="font-size: small"><sup>1</sup>Fitzpatrick, David, and Griffin, Drew. Cyber-extortion losses skyrocket, says FBI. CNN Money. 2016. </span><a href="http://money.cnn.com/2016/04/15/technology/ransomware-cyber-security/"><span style="font-size: small">http://money.cnn.com/2016/04/15/technology/ransomware-cyber-security/</span></a></p>&#10;<p><span style="font-size: small"><sup>2</sup>Staff Report. LA Hospital Paid 17K Ransom to Hackers of Its Computer Network. NBC Los Angeles. 2016. </span><a href="http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/Hollywood-Presbyterian-Paid-17K-Ransom-to-Hackers-369199031.html"><span style="font-size: small">http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/Hollywood-Presbyterian-Paid-17K-Ransom-to-Hackers-369199031.html</span></a></p>&#10;<p><span style="font-size: small"><sup>3</sup>FBI Public Service Announcement. Ransomware Victims Urged To Report Infections To Federal Law Enforcement. September, 2016. </span><a href="https://www.ic3.gov/media/2016/160915.aspx"><span style="font-size: small">https://www.ic3.gov/media/2016/160915.aspx</span></a></p>&#10;]]></content:encoded>
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<title>10 reasons you&#8217;ll love Windows Server 2016</title>
<link>https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/2016/11/03/10-reasons-youll-love-windows-server-2016/</link>
<comments>https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/2016/11/03/10-reasons-youll-love-windows-server-2016/#comments</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 03 Nov 2016 20:57:16 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Microsoft Windows Server Team]]></dc:creator>
<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/?p=13415</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Windows Server 2016 is the cloud-ready operating system built to support your current workloads and allow you to transition to the cloud. Weve taken all of our learnings from Azure and built them right in, packing it full of exciting new innovations and features. Here are ten we think youll love: 1. Control the keys <p><a class="read-more" href="https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/hybridcloud/2016/11/03/10-reasons-youll-love-windows-server-2016/">Continue reading</a></p>]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Windows Server 2016 is the cloud-ready operating system built to support your current workloads and allow you to transition to the cloud. Weve taken all of our learnings from Azure and built them right in, packing it full of exciting new innovations and features. Here are ten we think youll love:</p>&#10;<p><img width="200" height="154" title="Image1" style="padding-top: 0px;padding-left: 0px;padding-right: 0px;border-width: 0px" alt="Image1" src="https://msdnshared.blob.core.windows.net/media/2016/11/Image1.jpg" border="0" /></p>&#10;<h3>1. Control the keys to your sensitive data.</h3>&#10;<p>Improve security by limiting access to the IT environment with Just Enough and Just-In-Time Administration. Control who gets access to what and for how long. With Windows Server 2016, you can define which keys each admin has access to, even setting temporary permissions.</p>&#10;<p><img width="200" height="184" title="Image2" style="padding-top: 0px;padding-left: 0px;padding-right: 0px;border-width: 0px" alt="Image2" src="https://msdnshared.blob.core.windows.net/media/2016/11/Image2.jpg" border="0" /></p>&#10;<h3>2. Manage your servers from anywhere, even your mobile device.</h3>&#10;<p>Windows Server 2016 has a new toolset hosted in the cloud called Server Management Tools. Its a web-based remote GUI that allows you to manage your serversphysical or virtual, datacenter or cloudfrom just about anywhere, even your mobile device.</p>&#10;<p><a href="https://msdnshared.blob.core.windows.net/media/2016/11/Image3.jpg"><img width="200" height="158" title="Image3" style="float: none;padding-top: 0px;padding-left: 0px;margin-left: auto;padding-right: 0px;margin-right: auto;border-width: 0px" alt="Image3" src="https://msdnshared.blob.core.windows.net/media/2016/11/Image3_thumb.jpg" border="0" /></a></p>&#10;<h3>3. Deploy servers in an exact configuration and keep them that way.</h3>&#10;<p>Automate tasks and manage settings to set up and keep servers configured properly. Weve enhanced PowerShell Desired State Configuration and given you the ability to define, deploy, and manage your software environment using a single console. Weve also added elements of open source software that make it easier to test your code.</p>&#10;<p><img width="175" height="181" title="Image4" style="padding-top: 0px;padding-left: 0px;padding-right: 0px;border-width: 0px" alt="Image4" src="https://msdnshared.blob.core.windows.net/media/2016/11/Image41.jpg" border="0" /></p>&#10;<h3>4. Easily handle the 9:00 A.M. logon storm.</h3>&#10;<p>Weve improved and strengthened our Remote Desktop Services platform allowing partners to build secure, customized apps. Graphic improvements have increased compatibility and performance across the board.</p>&#10;<p><img width="250" height="176" title="Image5" style="float: none;padding-top: 0px;padding-left: 0px;margin-left: auto;padding-right: 0px;margin-right: auto;border-width: 0px" alt="Image5" src="https://msdnshared.blob.core.windows.net/media/2016/11/Image5.jpg" border="0" /></p>&#10;<h3>5. Do-it-yourself storage.</h3>&#10;<p>Software-defined storage used to be exclusive to storage industry vendors. With Windows Server Storage Spaces Direct, weve included all the features you traditionally expect, directly in the operating system. This means greater performance, without the premium cost.</p>&#10;<p><img width="250" height="153" title="Image6" style="padding-top: 0px;padding-left: 0px;padding-right: 0px;border-width: 0px" alt="Image6" src="https://msdnshared.blob.core.windows.net/media/2016/11/Image6.jpg" border="0" /></p>&#10;<h3>6. Upgrade without the downtime.</h3>&#10;<p>Rolling Cluster Upgrades and Mixed Mode Cluster allow you to upgrade and manage your servers without taking them down. This is designed to help reduce the impact of management operations on your workload.</p>&#10;<h3><img width="100" height="136" title="Image7" style="padding-top: 0px;padding-left: 0px;padding-right: 0px;border-width: 0px" alt="Image7" src="https://msdnshared.blob.core.windows.net/media/2016/11/Image7.jpg" border="0" /></h3>&#10;<h3>7. Click, click, donejust like in Azure.</h3>&#10;<p>Windows Server 2016 Software-Defined Networking is based on clear and concise policy management, cutting the time spent on infrastructure. This Azure-inspired network virtualization feature gives you the centralized control to configure network resources. Deploy new workloads more quickly and use network segmentation to increase security.</p>&#10;<p><img width="200" height="176" title="Image8" style="padding-top: 0px;padding-left: 0px;padding-right: 0px;border-width: 0px" alt="Image8" src="https://msdnshared.blob.core.windows.net/media/2016/11/Image81.jpg" border="0" /></p>&#10;<h3>8. Move beyond passive security.</h3>&#10;<p>Traditional, passive perimeter security is becoming less and less effective. Once someone bypasses your wall, they are free to do whatever they want. With Windows Server 2016, that is no longer true. Add new layers of security to your environment to control privileged access, protect virtual machines, and harden the platform against emerging threats.</p>&#10;<p><img width="200" height="171" title="Image9" style="padding-top: 0px;padding-left: 0px;padding-right: 0px;border-width: 0px" alt="Image9" src="https://msdnshared.blob.core.windows.net/media/2016/11/Image9.jpg" border="0" /></p>&#10;<h3>9. Use Containers to streamline app deployment from keyboard to production.</h3>&#10;<p>We are excited to announce that Containers are now built into Windows Server 2016, helping to accelerate your app deployment. Use Containers to streamline existing apps and to create new microservices, whether on-premises or in any cloud.</p>&#10;<p><img width="300" height="191" title="Image10" style="padding-top: 0px;padding-left: 0px;padding-right: 0px;border-width: 0px" alt="Image10" src="https://msdnshared.blob.core.windows.net/media/2016/11/Image10.jpg" border="0" /></p>&#10;<h3>10. A super small server that packs a big punch.</h3>&#10;<p>Nano Server is a new deployment option for Windows Server 2016 that loads an image 25x smaller than the Windows Server 2016 with a desktop. It brings only the elements that the specific workload needs, resulting in faster boot times and simpler operations.</p>&#10;<p><strong>BONUS</strong> Move to the cloud for less using your existing licenses</p>&#10;<p>With the Azure Hybrid Use Benefit, you can use on-premises Windows Server licenses that include Software Assurance to earn special pricing for new Windows Server virtual machines in Azurewhether youre moving a few workloads or your entire datacenter. <a href="https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/pricing/hybrid-use-benefit/">Start saving now&gt;</a></p>&#10;<h3>Ready to dive deeper?</h3>&#10;<p>This e-book will tell you everything you want to know about Windows Server 2016.</p>&#10;<h4>Get the <a href="https://info.microsoft.com/TheUltimateGuideToWindowsServer2016.html?ls=Blog">Ultimate Guide to Windows Server 2016</a>.</h4>&#10;]]></content:encoded>
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